Ducted panelling and articles



Oct. 10, 1967 J. H. LEMELSON DUCTED PANELLING AND ARTICLES 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Jan. 8, 1965 FIG.2

INVENTOR. Jerome H. Lemelson 1967 J. H. LEMELSON I 3,346,220

DUCTED PANELLING AND ARTICLES 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Jan. 8, 1965 FIG.8

INVENTOR Jerome H. Lernels n BY J.'H. LEMELSON DUCTED PANELLING AND ARTICLES 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed Jan. 8, 1965 INVENTOR g erome H.Lemelson United States Patent ()fiice Patented Oct. 10, 1967 3,346,220 DUCTED PANELLING AND ARTICLES Jerome H. Lemelson, 85 Rector St., Metuchen, NJ. 08840 Filed Jan. 8, 1965, Ser. No. 432,924 Claims. (Cl. 244-417) This invention relates to various constructions involving ducted sheet material and is a continuation-in-part of my copending application Serial No. 641,101 filed February 19, 1957, now Patent 3,173,195 for Ducted Paneling and Articles Made Thereof and SN. 304,165 filed August 23, 1963. In particular, this invention relates to structures and articles produced from sheet metal having one or more conduits formed within the sheet and operative to conduct and, in certain instances, dispense fluid material therefrom Applications of sheet metal panels having integral conduit formations have been heretofore primarily limited to the fabrication of refrigeration panels. By providing the novel constructions sheet formations hereinafter described, such sheet material may be applied as heat transfer means in the construction of various articles of manufacture including automobiles, trains, aircraft and boats for performing not only heat transfer functions but also as structural means and means for carrying dispensable fluids.

It is accordingly a primary object of this invention to provide new and improved constructions in ducted sheet material applicable to various articles of manufacture.

Another object is to provide improved articles and methods of fabricating ducted sheet material to form supporting parts of vehicles and aircraft and to simultaneously provide means for conducting one or more fluids therethrough.

Another object is to provide an improved structure in a vehicle body including a body shell made of a sheet of metal containing integral conduits operative to fiow heat transfer fluid therethrough for cooling and/ or heating the interior of the vehicle.

Another object is to provide an improved structure and method of fabricating a ducted panel containing conduit formations having wall portions extending from a single sheet of metal and having openings to said conduit formations for flowing fluid into or out of said formations for performing various useful functions.

Another object is to provide a new and improved construction in an aircraft of missile body and nose cone.

Another object is to provide an improved structure in an aircraft wing, the skin or internal portions of which are made of sheet material containing integral conduit formations.

Another object is to provide new and improved methods of fabricating sheet materials and articles of metal containing ceramic particles integrally bonded or molded thereto.

With the above and such other objects in view as may hereafter more fully appear, the invention consists of novel constructions, combinations and arrangements of parts as will be more fully described and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, but it is to be understood that changes, variations and modifications may be resorted to which fall within the scope of the invention as claimed.

FIG. 1 is a sectional, fragmentary view of part of a duct containing sheet or panel made in accordance with the present invention,

FIG. 2 illustrates in cross section a sandwich array of components which may be used in one method of fabricating the panel or sheet of FIG. 1 and FIG. 3 is the same as FIG. 2 after the duct has been formed in said sheet,

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary view in end-cross section of an improved ducted sheet in the realm of the invention,

FIG. 4' shows the ducted sheet of FIG. 1 applied to an assembly whereby it is firmly held thereby,

' FIG. 5 is a view of part of an aircraft body in cross section showing construction utilizing the ducted sheet of the invention,

FIG. 5' shows in cross section still another construction of an aircraft body,

FIG. '6 is a fragmentary view at the bulkhead or former of an aircraft body showing still further details of construction utilizing the ducted sheet of the invention,

FIG. 7 is a fragmentary view in cross section showing an assembly of a base member or body with a sheet of metal prior to the formation of a construction previously illustrated in FIG. 5,

FIG. 8 shows the assembly of FIG. 7 modified by in flation of part of said sheet,

FIG. 9 is a sectioned view of a fragment of a panel applicable to the aforementioned and other structures,

FIG. 10 is a plan view of a fragment of a ducted sheet of the type illustrated in FIG. 1 whereby said integrally formed duct is shaped in said sheet in a manner affording improved structural strength to said panel and duct and improved heat transfer characteristics.

FIG. 11 is a partly sectioned side view of part of the body of an aircraft or missile including the nose section thereof and details of the skin construction utilizing the ducted sheeting of the invention,

FIG. 12 is a section through a plane at right angles of said sheet in the invention.

Referring now specifically to FIG. 1, there is shown a fragment of tubed or ducted sheet 10 made of metal and having one or more ducts 12 integrally formed of the material of said sheet. The integral tubing may extend in any parallel or nonparallel pattern throughout said sheet and preferably terminates at two points near the edge of said sheet providing a circuit accessible from said sheet edge through which a fluid may be flowed for heat exchanging and other applications. The solid sheet areas between or adjacent the duct sections 12 are referred to by the notation 18. One wall 16 of the integrally formed tube projects beyond the surface 14 of the sheet whereas the other wall 22 enclosing said tube or duct is a normal, nondeformed extension of the solid adjacent sheet sections 18. The other surface 20 of the sheet or panel 10 is thus entirely flat and is void of any noticeable deformation adjacent the internal duct or ducts 12.

The tubed sheet 10, illustrated in FIG. 1 having one surface flat or nondeformed, has numerous advantages over conventionally fabricated tubed sheets of the type which provides one or more conduits integrally formed in a metal sheet whereby the walls of said tubing project from both surfaces of said sheet. The tubing provided by these two commercial processes is superior in many applications to coils or bent formations of the conventional circular walled duct or tubing. However, tubed sheet made by the two processes is limited in the aforementioned manners in application and heat transfer efficiency. The sheet 10 of FIG. 1 may have brackets or other mounting fixtures fastened to the flat side without interference from projecting duct walls, a characteristic which would sometimes require shaping or cutting away the brackets to accommodate the projecting duct Wall. The surface 20 may be wrapped around or brought into abutment with any surface of smoothly contoured shape without difficulty.

In the illustrative form of the invention, broken lines 22' are provided to show how the wall 22 of one of the ducts would bulge outward from the surface 20 of the original sheet if fabricated by the conventional methods. In this condition, the sheet could not be used per se in a variety of products requiring one side flat.

FIGS. 2 and 3 illustrate a means for fabricating the one-side flat panel or tubed sheet of FIG. 1. In the conventional method of forming a tubed or ducted sheet, a sheet of metal having a nonfused interfacial strip or strip pattern is provided and is held in any manner while an inflating nozzle is inserted into an edge opening to said nonfused interface. The faces of the sheet adjacent the nonfused strip area are purposely not held in clamping engagement except near an edge of said sheet where said interfacial area ends, if it is desired to prevent the inflating fluid from escaping. In FIG. 2 a sheet of metal containing one or more nonfused interfacial strip areas 12 is held in clamping engagement against'a rigid base or platen 24 by a pad or block 26 of resilient material, such as rubber, against the other surface of which a second rigid platen 28 is forced. The rigid members 24 and 28 may be respectively the base platen and upper jaw of a press or rigid blocks of metal clamped between the jaws of a press.

In FIG. 3 the sheet 10 of FIG. 2 is shown with the ting surface of 24 will depend on the physical characteristics of the sheet 10, the dimensions of the interfacial strip volume 12, the characteristics of the resilient block 26 and the area of the sheet material 18 which does not deform. A fluid pressure or range of pressures will therefore exist which may be applied to the interfacial area 12' and deform one wall 16 thereof while the other wall 22 is held against the surface of 24 and remains flat or nondeformed as illustrated.

The tubed sheet or ducted panel structure illustrated in FIG. 1 may be used in various articles of manufacture both for heat transfer and/or fluid conduction applications where fluid is circulated through the conduits or duct volumes 12 in the sheet per se or is expelled thereform as a plurality of streams through plural holes provided along the conduit portions of the sheet in either or both walls 16 and 22. Reference is particularly made to my copending patent application Serial No. 304,165 in which is shown constructions in a ducted sheet or panel of the type illustrated in FIG. 1 which may be utilized with a fluid pressurizin-g, pumping or suction system for either ejecting fluid from the panel as streams or sprays thereof or drawing said fluid into the passageways 12 therein.

Such a panel 16 may be used as the skin of an aircraft or missile wing elevator or the like, in which the surface thereof is exposed to airflow and substantially defines one limit of the so-called boundary layer of the flight stream. Small holes or slots 19 disposed in the wall portions 22 of the conduit portions of the sheet may be operative to receive boundary layer air and draw same into the passageways 12 in the sheet to flow therefrom to a turbine or other means for reducing boundary layer drag. Depending on the configuration of the flight member and the aerodynamics of flow, it may be desirable to form the sheet 10 with a plurality of parallel or otherwise extending duct formations therein extending parallel or perpendicular to the direction of air flow or in any suitable configuration depending on the dimensions of the slotted holes in wall portions 22 which may extend in any suitable direction, preferably although not necessarily parallel to the longitudinal axis of the conduit formations in sheet 10. If extending longitudinally to the conduit formations in the sheet, a plurality of staggered parallel slots may be provided along each conduit formation although one line of short narrow slots in each conduit wall may suffice for many flight purposes.

In other forms of this embodiment of the invention, the ducted sheet 19 may be bonded or welded to other panels or sheets such as provided in FIG. 9 or may be secured to other structures such as honeycomb members, frames, bulkheads, or solid sheets which form structural panels therewith forming either the entire wing member of part thereof. The surface 21 of sheet 10 may comprise the flight surface of the wing 'as described or may comprise an internal surface with the holes or slotted openings in walls 22 and/ or 16 of the conduits communicating with openings or passageways in the panel extending to the flight surface or boundary layer for drawing flight air into conduits 12. In another form of the invention, certain conduits 11 in the sheet 10 may be connected to a source of heat transfer fluid for transferring heat relative the flight surface which other conduits formed therein as described for reducing boundary layer drag and otherwise improving flight performance. The heat transfer function may comprise removing heat from the flight member due to air friction experienced at high flight speeds and/or heating a portion of the flight surface to remove or prevent the formation of ice thereon. Reference is also made to FIG. 19 which illustrates holes H provided in the wall 16 of the sheet conduit formation of a one side flat ducted sheet of the type shown in FIG. 1. Such holes may also be provided in opposite a wall 22 thereof or both walls, of the vein-like conduit or duct depending on the application. Certain of the conduit formations 12 may be used to carry heat transfer fluid while others may be used for suction purposes as described.

FIG. 4 shows a tubed sheet of the type illustrated in FIG. 1 comprising a sheet of metal 10 having one or more ducts 12 formed integrally therein each of which has a wall 16 projecting or bulging from one surface of said sheet and a second wall section 22 which is a natural extension of said sheet. The outer surface of the wall 22 and the entire adjacent area of said sheet 10 is intended for use whereby it faces a heat source or supply of means for transferring heat to said sheet. The integrally formed ducts 12 are therefore intended as carriers for a heat transfer fluid to be flowed therethrough and to conduct, via motion of said fluid, said heat passed to said sheet to a cooling device or volume where it may be dissipated and will not cause the destruction of said sheet. The letter C refers to a protective material which may coat all or part of the surface 20 of said sheet which is exposed to said heat. The coating material of C is preferably a ceramic or cermet material applied by one or more'of various means such as flame spraying, forced coating or applying it cold thereon whereafter it is fused by heat. The layer Cmay be any suitable ceramic oxide (magnesium oxide, aluminum oxide, zirconium oxide, etc.) and may have one or more layers of a vitreous enamel type of coating provided over its exterior facing surface to further protect the surface (i.e. enamel coating may consist of chromium oxide, 20% magnesium oxide). The enamel type coating may provide a glass-like, smooth surface which, if the panel 10 is to be used with the surface of said outer surface of C and its coating, provides an aerodynamically suitable surface for use in high speed aircraft. Two constructions of the sheet 10 are illustrated:

(A) The coating C with or without said enamel finish coat covering the entire surface 20 of 10. The sheet 10 may thus be used as a protective shield or the wall of an enclosure for protecting equipment from heat. A heat. transfer fluid flowed through the duct 12 may be used to carry off heat passed through the protective layer C. The duct or ducts 12 thus coact with the protective layer C to preserve the sheet 10 from heat destruction or corrosion. Depending on the temperatures and the flow characteristics external of the surface 20, either the coating C or the ducting 12 per se may notbesuflicient to protect the panel 10. Together they coact tov provide a highly eflicient shield. The integral formation of the duct walls 16 and 22 with the base sheet greatly reduces the possibility of local hot spots developing which may occur in a welded construction (i.e. whereby a duct or tube is welded to a panel or sheet).

(B) A second proposed construction is illustrated by the notations C' and C which refer to ceramic coatings either side of the duct wall section 22. The area between C and C" may be uncoated or may be provided with a coating of less thickness and hence less insulating characteristic (i.e., greater heat conductivity) than the areas C and C". In this manner, more heat will be transferred across the wall section 22 to the fluid than across the sheet sections 18 adjacent thereto. The adjacent sheet volumes 18 will thus be protected from heat corrosion while a fluid passing through the duct section 12 may be used to protect the Wall 22, thereby affording efficient heat transfer without damage to said panel due to excessive heat softening and/or corrosion of either or both surfaces of the sheet sections 18.

In FIG. 4, a method of securing the panel of FIG. 1 with the projecting wall 16 of the duct or ducts 12 abutting a structure or positioned against a mounting bracket with the flat or nondeformed surface 20 clear of said structure or bracket. The numeral refers to the mounting bracket or stringer. The bracket 30 in FIG. 4 is shown as a right angle bracket or structural angle member having legs 32 and 34 adapted to respectively abut the surfaces of the ducted sheet 10 and a base or mount 38 to which it is desired to secure It) in fixed and rigid relationship. The numeral 36 refers to a rib or gusset for supporting 32 and 34 in fixed relation to each other. The leg 32 is shown secured to sheet 10 with a rivet 40 and 34 is secured to 38 with a second fastener 42. Securing may also be effected by welding or bonding means. It is noted that the integrally formed ducts 12 in sheet 10 run essentially at right angles to the plane of the drawing and the projecting wall of said ducts protrude from the surface of sheet 10 which abuts or faces the bracket or structural member 30. The leg or plate 32 of 30 is therefore cut away or contoured at the areas along 32 where the sheet ducts 12 are provided and abut thereagainst upon assembly therewith. The cutaway or contoured sections 42 may be machined or provided as part of the shape of 32 if the latter is cast. The shape of cutaways 42 is preferably such that the ducts 12 will make snug engagement with the surface of said indentation 42 upon assembly of the two members thereby enhancing the support of sheet 10 and the ducts 12 and providing a means whereby heat may be transferred to or from the bracket 39 and the base 38, if necessary, by virtue of the fluid carried in the duct or ducts 12.

FIGS. 5 and 5 show constructional details of an application of a ducted panel or sheet 10, as described, as the skin of an acerodynamic body 44 such as the body or pod of an aircraft or missile intended for flight at air speeds in the region of Mach 2 or higher where skin friction or aerodynamic heating may cause heat damage to or destruction of said body. One method of protecting a body in flight from excessive aerodynamic heating is to cool the skin of the aircraft by fluid heat transfer means. FIGS. 5 and 5 show body and skin constructional details of an aircraft body of circular cross section referred to by the numeral 44 whereby the skin or the outer casing of said skin comprises one or more of the ducted sheets 10 of FIG. 1. It is noted that by changing the general shape of the body of FIGS. 5 and 5, most any aerodynamic shape such as flight stabilizers, wings and the like may be provided with essentially the same means of fluid cooling to prevent heat damage thereto while in flight.

FIG. 5 shows body constructional details whereby the ducted sheet 10 comprises the outer skin of the craft which is fabricated by conventional means using bulkheads joined together by longitudinally extending beams and stringers, whereas in FIG. 5' the body is made up of two or more formed heavy walls or body shells 46 6 and 48 joined together in a monocoque construction and covered on their exterior surface with one or more of said ducted or tubed sheets 10, the ducts 12 of which are adapted for circulating a cooling fluid such as air or liquid carried in said craft therethrough to transfer heat from the exterior surface of said body thereby preventing it from softening or being destroyed by heat during flight.

In FIG. 5 the body 44 is constructed by the conventional built-up skeletal construction whereby a series of bulkheads or ribs 50 are joined together by beams or stringers 54 and 56 which extend along the major part of the length of the body. The numeral 52 refers to an inner sheetor skin of metal shaped to contour and secured to the inner rim or edge of the bulkhead 50 providing an airspace between the outer skin 10 and itself which serves to further insulate the interior volume of the body 44 from any heat which may pass through said outer skin. While the skin 10 is shown with relatively widely spaced ducts 12 said duct or tubed sections may be closer together to effect better heat transfer to the fluid flowing therethrough. The skin 10 may be fastened in a multiple of longitudinally extending sections to the bulkheads 50 by rivets, fasteners, welding or bonding means. The numeral 54 may refer to notched beams or spacers between 52 and 10 for stiffening the structure and for holding 10 and 50 in fixed relation to each other. It is noted in FIG. 5 that the beams or spacers 54 are modified I-beam shapes with one flange end of the beam adapted to contact the sheet 10 and circumscribe the projecting wall 16 of the ducts 12 of 10. This construction serves two purposes. It (54) supports the tube wall 16. In addition 54 is cooled by the fluid flowing through said abutted duct so that little, if any, heat is transferred through the web of said beam or stiffener 54 to the inner sheet 52. Throughout the drawings hereafter the letter C refers to a protective coating of a ceramic or cermet material (such as an alumina, zirconia or other high temperature ceramic) applied to the surface indicated by conventional means, for protecting said surface further from heat. The combination of the fluid cooling means and said coating are believed to offer a heat protection means far superior to any taught by the prior art. The letter R refers to a fastener such as a rivet for holding two or more parts together. The letter W refers to a weld or bond (molecular or cement) between two or more components. While not shown in FIG. 5, the skin 10 may be bonded or riveted to the formers or bulkheads 50 and/ or the stringers or beams 54.

In FIG. 5, the aerodynamic body or shape 44 is made in a monocoque or self-supporting body shell construction of two half wall or shell sections 46 and 48 which may be forged, cast, machined (from solid stock) or otherwise formed to the desired shape and then joined together by fasteners or welding or bonding means. In FIG. 5' the body half shells 46 and 48 are each provided with two internally projecting flanges, one pair of which 58, 60 are shown. The flanges 58, 60 may each respectively be joined to or formed integrally with a respective body shell. Said flanges run longitudinally the length of the body 44 so that when they are held together in clamping engagement by fasteners R they not only secure the two body sections 46, 48 together but seal off the interior. Each body shell is provided with a series or circuit of indentations or channels in its exterior surface, referred to by the numeral 62 in FIG. 5, which accommodate the projecting walls 16 of the ducted skin 10 which is secured tightly against said body halves after assembly of the latter. The exterior of skin 10, as in FIG. 5 may be coated with a ceramic or cermet layer C for heat corrosion protection. The members 46, 48 and the skin 10 which is stretched thereover may be fastened together with small, flush countersunk rivets or may be welded together at the interface. The inner body shell 52 of FIG. 5 may also be heavy walled construction offering a monocoque inner body with the outer skin 10 spaced thereoif to protect it from aerodynamic heating and the annular space between the two affording further insulation. It is also noted that a fluid such as air may be flowed in the volume between 18 and 52 of FIG. wherein the formers or bulkheads 50 would be provided with holes or completely eliminated.

FIG. 6 shows further details vof a built up skeletal construction similar to that illustrated in FIG. 5. The bulkhead 50 is shown formed with a flange 64- extending about its periphery which is shaped to accommodate the outer skin 12. The flange 64 is provided with indented sections 66 shaped to permit the projecting walls 16 of the sheet to fit snugly thereagainst while the sheet sections 18 between the ducts 12 are abutted by sections 68 between the curved sections 66 of 64. FIG. 6 shows further details of securing stringers to the bulkheads or formers 50 of the body 44. The stringers 7t and 72 are illustrated as box beams which are secured to the bulkheads 50 by brackets 86 riveted thereto. The box beam 70 is held off the skin 10 by a channel 88 having side flanges 82 which are shown riveted to the sections 68 of the bulkhead flange 64-. Thebase 84 of the channel 80 is secured with rivets to the box beam stringer 70. The bracket 86 is secured to both 70 and 50 with rivets.

The other stringer or standoff 74 is shown as an I- beam with one flange 75 secured to the skin 10 by welding or with rivets (not shown) and the other flange 76 secured to the beam 72 which in turn is secured to 50.

It is noted that in the construction illustrated in FIG. 5, cooling of said body may be enhanced by directing a fluid such as air to flow through the volume 51 between the inner body member or shell 52 and the outer skin member 10 which will help to dissipate any heat radiated from the inside surface of 10 and not dissipated by the fluid flowing through the ducts 12 of 10. The notations 10a, 10b, 10c and 10d are used to indicate that the outer skin of the aircraft body may be made of a number of sections secured to either the under bodies 46, 48 or the skeletal frame of which former 50 is one member.

FIGS. 7 and 8 show panel assembly means applicable to the body-skin construction illustrated in FIG. 5'. In FIG. 7 a body member or base panel or plate 86 is provided with a channel or channel pattern 88 provided from one of its surfaces against which a second sheet or skin 10 is held and secured. The two may be welded or bonded together with a nonfused interfacial strip or pattern 12 provided in 10 opposite the chamber or channel 88 or channel pattern. It is noted that 12 may be pro vided closer to the surface of said sheet which faces template 86 so that when a fluid pressure is applied to the sheet 10, material thereof adjacent 88 will deform into said chamber 88 as in FIG. 8 without deformation of the other metal opposite 12. However, if the technique of FIGS. 2 and 3 is utilized in which a pad or rigid die is disposed against the outer surface of sheet 10 to hold it against template 86, the strip volume 12' may be midway between the two surfaces of 10. It is noted that the walls .of the channel 88 serves as a guide or die means for deforming portion of portions of sheet 10 whereby the material thereof may be made to conform to said channel walls. The outer surface of 10 or the opposite surface of 86 .(not shown) may be coated with a protective ceramic material C.

It is noted that in the construction of certain structures and articles employed in heat transfer functions, such as the aircraft body of FIG. 5, and aircraft wings or other device, the construction of FIG. 7 per se may suffice (i.e. where the nonfused interface 12' is nonexistent) and the assembly of a sheet with the base member 86 (which may be 46) forms an enclosed duct of the channel volume 88 which may be part of a heat transfer system with fluid inlet and outlet means thereto. The sheet 10 may be molecularly or otherwise bonded or welded to the surface of 88 which it abuts and the fluid flowing through 88 will transfer heat to or from both 10 and the basesheet 86.

The method and apparatus illustrated in FIGS. 7 and 8 and, in certain instances when modified as in FIGS. 2 and 3, may be utilized to shape sheet metal as described and to provide embossments in a sheet conforming to the shape of the channels or chambers 88 in template member 86 and also in the fabrication of metal, glass or ceramic panels and sheets having surface embossments provided in one surface thereof by fluid pressure applied to the sheet.

FIG. 9 is a fragmental view in cross section of a ducted panel construction made by a particular method to be described and applicable to various articles of manufacture such as the aircraft structure of FIG. 5' and the like. The panel comprises a rigid base member or panel plate which may correspond to 46 and 48 of FIG. 5 or 86 of FIGS. 7 and 8. The surface 92 of member 90 may be exposab'le to high speed air and may be an aircraft flight surface such as the surface of a wing, rudder or body. The surface 92 may also be coated with a protective ceramic material C of the type heretofore described which may be coated with an enamel glaze or porcelain finish as described to provide reduced aerodynamic friction when the craft is in flight. Secured in surface abutment with the other surface of 90 is the one-side-flat tubed sheet 10 of FIGS. 1 to 3 with the flat surface 20 thereof in abutment with 90. The duct wall 16 thus projects outward from the assembly which may be the inside of the fuselage of an aircraft or wing. Further assembly of the panel of FIG. 9 with other members such as an innerbody (46) or a bracket 36 (FIG. 4') or the bulkhead 50 (FIG. 6) may be further effected if necessary or the sandwich construction of FIG. 9 may be used per se as the mono'coque assembly of a body or wing member. A heat transfer fluid is flowed through the duct 12 of 10 and dissipates heat penetrating the layer C and/ or passed through the member 90. If the two panel members 10 and 90 are in forced mechanical abutment with each other by the use of rivets or other fasteners clampingly engaging the two together, or are molecularly bonded or welded together then there will be good heat conduction across the interface or what was the interface between the two and the efliciency of the construction will be enhanced permitting operation of the panel at higher temperatures due to the more rapid conduction of heat from 90 to 10 and therethrough to the fluid carried in the duct 12. The notation CA refers to a ceramic or heat corrosion protecting layer on the other surface of 10 to protect it from oxidation when hot.

Methods of (fabricating the sandwich assembly or panel illustrated in figures are presented as follows:

1) In a first method, member or plate 90 is made of a material other than the non-ferrous sheet 10. While sheet 10 is preferably aluminum or copper although it may be any other metal capable of being molecularly bonded by hot rolling or cold pressure welding and the duct 10 deformed therefrom with fluid pressure. If the base member or panel 90 is a ferrous alloy such as steel or stainless steel, then a panel or sandwich assembly of superior structural characteristics will be attained. Such a panel or structure will have numerous applications which require greater strenght than the sheet 10 can provide. Fabrication of the assembly 89 of FIG. 9 may be effected by first coating one surface of member 90- with a layer of aluminum or other nonferrous metal. Aluminum may be coated or molecularly bonded thereon by any suitable process or, if the member 90 is a sheet or plate of steel, by so-called cladding techniques. So-called cladded aluminum or copper coated steel sheet is available as a commercial product. The duct 12 is provided over the coating so applied as follows: A second sheet of nonferrous metal is molecularly bonded to the outer surface of the cladding or coating on 90 with a release agent such as carbon or other friable material (also known as a stop- Weld agent) applied as a strip or strip pattern between said sheet and the outer surface of said coating or cladding on 90 so as to provide a nonfused inter-facial strip or strip pattern. The release agent may be mixed in a liquid such as a resin or water and applied either to the surface of the cladding metal or coating or to the abutted surface of the sheet of metal bonded thereto. The sheet of metal (such as aluminum) may be molecularly bonded to said cladded layer or coating by pressure or heat and pressure as the two are brought together in a rolling mill. The duct 12 is then formed by applying suflicient fluid pressure to said nonfused interfacial strip or pattern to cause the metal of the last applied sheet which is adjacent said nonfused area, to bulge outward as illustrated in FIG. 9. Due to the superior rigidity of the base member 9%), the duct wall 16 will bulge outward from only the outer surface of the last applied layer or sheet when fluid pressure is applied to the volume 12 whereas the coating or clad layer which comprises the wall 22 of the duct does not deform as it is prevented from doing so by the base member or sheet 90.

(2) In a second method of forming the assembly 89 of FIG. 9 said base sheet 90 is provided with a cladding or coating of nonferrous metal such as aluminum bonded or welded thereto by the rolling or cladding process, the interface between the two being referred to by the letter W in FIG. 9 which refers to a molecular bonding or weld between the base plate 90 and said coating or sheet cladded thereon. A sheet of metal (as illustrated in FIG. 2) having the desired nonfused interfacial strip or pattern 12 provided thereon is then molecularly bonded to the outer surface of the metal secured to 90 by compressing the two together in a rolling mill with or without heat added, under suflicient pressure to effect said molecular bonding. The interfacial strip 12 is then pressurized causing the wall 16 to bulge outward with the metal on the other side of said nonfused interface prevented from deforming by the member or plate 90.

(3) A third technique of forming the panel or sandwich assembly of FIG. 9 is to provide a sheet 10 as in FIG. 2 with a nonfused inter'facial strip or pattern and molecular-ly bond it to the base member 90. This may be effected by heating 90 to near the melting point of the material of 10 and rolling the two under pressure in a rolling mill whereby the two become welded or molecularly bonded together with the interfacial non-fused strip 12' remaining unaffected.

It is noted, in the techniques of forming the sandwich assembly 89 of FIG. 9, if the base member 90 is irregularly shaped or tapered and cannot be rolled in a rolling mill, the cladding or bonding of said nonferrous metal 01' sheets thereon may be effected by use of a hydraulic press and mated dies adapted to clarnpingly compress said member 90 during application of the pressure to effect said molecular bonding. Cold pressure or resistance welding techniques may also be employed. The member 90 may also be a ceramic material.

The construction of FIG. 9 provides a superior heat transfer assembly which has many advantages over the use of either the ducted sheet 10 per se or the plate per se. Fusion or molecular bonding of the two together at W provides superior heat transfer through 90 to 10 and to the heat transfer fluid carried through duct 12. The base 10 may have superior heat resistent characteristics than the metal of 10 such as a higher melting temperature thus permitting use of the panel 89 at higher temperatures than 10 per se. The superior strength of 9!) will permit use of the panel 89 in applications in which the duct 10 used per se would fail. The outer surface 92 of 90 may be coated with a ceramic C to protect it from heat corrosion damage as may the outer surface of 10 if necessary. It is thus seen that the combination of the base member 90, fused to or molecularly bonded with 10 provides a panel or structure which is far superior in many respects to either when used alone.

FIG. 10 illustrates design features of a ducted sheet 94 of the type illustrated in FIG. 4 whereby the so-called flat or nondeformed surface of said sheet may be used as a flight surface which is susceptible to aerodynamic forces such as the direct force of dynamic pressure applied thereto by air at high speed striking said surface. In FIG. 10 the arrow A points in the general direction of the flight airstream over the aircraft covered by the ducted sheet 94. The duct pattern or ducts integrally formed in the metal of 94 consist of a series of formations having a sinewave like shape in FIG. 10 and extending in the general direction of the flow (arrow A). The pattern of FIG. 10 having the wave shaped ducts 96, 96', 96", etc., may start for example at or near the nose or an aircraft or missile body or wing and extend a desired distance along the length of the body or cord of the wing skin. In FIG. 10, the formations 96 are shown as a series of parallel, equally spaced wave shaped ducts. They, of course, may be staggered somewhat and out of parallel depending on What part of the aircraft the sheet 94 is used as a skin or covering for and also upon the desired heat transfer and strength characteristics of said sheet. For example, if said sheet 94 is used per se or in part to cover a tapered aircraft nose cone or body, then the Wave formations 96, 96' etc. may be closer together near the small taper or nose end of said aircraft body with the wave sections or reverse curve segments of each formation expanding in amplitude about a central axis as the taper or cross section of the body increases. The cooling fluid may be introduced at the nose end of said aircraft body and may consist of air or an internally stored liquid such as the fuel for said craft passed through the duct formations 96, 96', etc., to cool said skin sufliciently to prevent its deformation or destruction. The notation 93 refers to the upstream side of the ducts 96 and 93' to the downstream end or side of said ducts. The duct walls which project from the surface of 94 of course project into the fuselage in the manner of one of the described constructions so that a flat surface is provided for the surface of the aircraft which is exposed to the flight stream or fluid flow.

The ducted sheet 94 illustrated in FIG. 10 has numerous heat transfer and strength advantages over the conventional tubed sheet whereby the tubed formation run parallel and perpendicular to each other in essentially straight lines. It is noted that the exposed surface of a tubed sheet having essentially tube formations running essentially straight and parallel provides a structure whereby (a) the sheet per se is structurally not as stiff as the design of FIG. 10, (b) the flat wall sections (22 of FIG. 1) will not be supported as strongly as the flat wall sections of the ducts 96 of FIG. 10, and (c) heat transfer will not be as eflicient as the ducts 96 of FIG. 10. It is known that a continuously changing or oscillating type of sheet structure is stronger than a flat sheet, and in a similar manner, the walls of the ducts of FIG. 10, and particularly the fiat Wall sections, will resist a greater force applied thereto to collapse or expand said walls than a tubed section having a straight wall or one of less variation in direction. Aerodynamic forces such as shock waves or dynamic pressure forces will not effect (bow in or collapse either the duct walls or the sheet of FIG. 10) at a force value above which a tubed sheet having parallelly extending straight walled ducts will collapse or permanently deform. The corrugated type formations of ducts 96 have additional heat transfer advantages not only for aircraft but for other articles of manufacture. If the medium exchanging heat with the exterior of the surface of 96 is flowing in the direction of the arrow A it is noted that any stream line will alternately cross said tube formation and the nontubed areas between the waves thereof, thus effecting more efficient heat transfer and reducing the possibility of high temperature hot strip areas present between the conventional straight line type of duct formation.

FIGS. 11 and 12 illustrate details of the ducted sheet 94 of FIG. 94 applied as the skin of an aircraft whereby said sheet serves in addition to its function as a skin, as a means for cooling said skin and providing .a skin member of improved structural quality reinforced by said corrugated or zig-zag extending duct walls 96. The nose section 95 of FIG. 11 may be the nose of a jet or rocket aircraft or the nose cone of a missile and is preferably one subjected to intense aerodynamic heating and stresses due to ram or dynamic pressures. The skin covering the nose 95 referred to by the notation 94a and may be riveted or welded to formers or bulkheads (not shown) by conventional means. The front end or leading edge 93 of the sheet 94:! has the duct sections 96 connected by means provided hereafter or in my said pending applications to a circular toroidal or elliptically shaped header 97 for conducting cooling fluid thereto which then flows back through the sheet 94a towards the rear of the body 95 along the paths illustrated. The header tube 97 is fed by one or more tubes or pipes 98 extending thereto from a supply reservoir of said fluid located further back in the body 95 (not shown). The tubes 98 are shown in the sectioned view FIG. 12 as extending along the interior walls of 94a and is preferably supported thereby by straps or U-clamps also not shown which are connected to the bulkheads or wall sections 18 of the sheet 94a. Notation 99 refers to such a mounting bracket or U-clamp holding inlet pipe 98 against the sheet 94a and secured thereto between the tubed sections (i.e., in the area 18 duct formations 96 in FIG.

Also illustrated in FIG. 12 is an outer shell or covering 95 over sheet 94:; which outer shell may be a ceramic material or heavier shell, plate or metal applied to sheet 94a by the teachings of FIG. 9. If 95' is a cermet or ceramic coating, layer or shell it may be used to protect the outer surface of 94a While the ducting system thereof prevents damage to 95 and the interior of the body 95.

In FIG. 12, the ceramic coating or member 95 is preferably finished on its exterior surface with a highly smooth surface 95a which may be provided by spraying or otherwise applying a high temperature ceramic enamel of th type heretofore described which may be cured or fused onto the exterior surface of 94a or 95' by passing said body through an oven or otherwise applying suflicient heat thereto. The entire exterior surface of the aircraft of which body 95 is a part is preferably similarly processed to give it a glass-like, aerodynamically smooth finish.

I claim:

1. An aircraft flight component such as an aircraft wing or body having a surface which is exposed to airflow when said aircraft is flying and is subject to aerodynamic heating, said component including an assembly having an inner body of monocoque construction, a sheet of metal having a fluid conduit formed therein, one wall of said conduit projecting from a first surface of said sheet, the other surface of said sheet being void of irregularities in the area of said conduit formation, said first surface of said sheet abutting outwardly facing surface portions of said inner body, and a channel formation in the abutted surface of said inner body shaped to accommodate and support said bulging walls of said conduit formation in said sheet of metal.

2. In aircraft construction, a flight component such as a wing or body member having a surface thereof which is exposable to high speed air when said aircraft is in flight and is subject to aerodynamic heating, said flight component having an outer surface member which is a ducted sheet of metal with its outer surface exposed to said high speed air being void of projecting duct wall formations, an inner body member completed, surrounded and spaced apart from said outer surface memher and protected thereby from said high speed airstream, structural support members between said inner body member and said outer sheet member to support the lat- 12 7 ter in fixed relation to said inner body member, the duct wall formations in said outer sheet member projecting into the space between said two members, means circulating a heat transfer fluid through said ductformations of said outer sheet member is dissipate heat generated as high speed air flows over its outer surface, and further heat transfer means including means flowing a fluid through the volume between said two members the outer surface of said outer sheet surface member being coated with a protective ceramic material adding further protection thereto.

3. In a aircraft construction, a body member having a skeletal frame for supporting a skin, said frame comprising multiple formers or bulkheads joined together in spaced apart relationship and defining the general shape of said body member, each of said bulkheads having an outer rim circumscribing said bulkhead, said rims of said bulkheads having a series of indentations therein extending the width of said bulkhead, a one-side-flat tubed or ducted sheet secured to and circumscribing said bulkheads, the duct formations in said sheet projecting only from the surface of said sheet facing said bulkheads, said indentations in said bulkheads shaped to accommodate said projecting walls of said ducts whereby said projecting walls of said ducts make surface contact with the surface of said bulkhead indentations while the areas of the rims of said bulkheads between said indented sections make surface contact with the sheet surfaces between said ducts thereby affording maximum support to said aircraft skin.

4. An aircraft flight component such as an aircraft wing having a surface which is exposed to airflow when said aircraft is flying and is subject to aerodynamic heating when said aircraft is flying at supersonic speeds, said component comprising an assembly of a plate member and a sheet member comprising part of said component, said plate member having a channel formed in a surface thereof, said sheet member covering said channel and forming a duct pattern, the duct of which extends beneath a suflicient portion of said sheet member to prevent the destruction of said component by heat when said aircraft is flying at supersonic speeds, an inlet to said duct, an outlet therefrom, means for flowing a heat transfer fluid through said duct and, means for sealingly securing said sheet and said plate member in abutment with each other, whereby said channel provides a fluid conducting duct system through which a heat transfer fluid may be flowed.

5. An aircraft construction, said aircraft designed for flight above Mach 2 and having a body section susceptible to aerodynamic heating at high supersonic airspeeds, said body section having a nose section which increases with the length of said body from the nose end thereof from a minimum cross section to a greater cross section, means cooling at least part of said body and said nose section to prevent damage or destruction thereto from said aerodynamic heating, said cooling means including covering said nose section with a one-side-flat ducted sheeting of the type described, the exterior of said ducted sheet being smoothly shaped to the contour of said nose section, the protruding walls of said ducting of said sheet projecting into said body section, the exterior of said ducted sheeting being coated with a high temperature resistant, protective ceramic material for partly insulating said sheet and preventing heat corrosion damage thereto, said ducting of said sheeting extending in a continuous path from near the nose end of said nose section backwards along said body skin, means flowing a heat transfer fluid through said ducting to conduct heat transferred thereto from the exterior of said skin along part of said body including said nose section and to thereby remove heat conducted thereto through said protective ceramic coating, said ceramic coating having its exterior surface provided with a glass like protective exterior surface which is void of surface irregularities, said fluid flowing means including a source of fiuid supply, means ducting said fluid from said source Within said aircraft to near the nose end of said body, header means within said body connected by ducting means to said skin ducting whereby fiuid pumped from said fluid supply is passed therethrough to said skin ducting and flows from near said nose end backward through the ducts of said ducted sheet ing and transfers sufficient heat from said nose section to protect it from destruction by the result of said heating.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS Fanti 244-117 Plafl et a1. 244-42 Rice 244117 Dedrick 29-1573 Rodman 244-123 Bibbins 51-309 Herbon 982 Raskin 165-170 Marshall 51-309 Grenell et al. 29-1573 Brocard 244-42 Adams 165-170 Williams 29-195 Michael 29-195 15 MILTON BUCHLER, Primary Examiner.

FERGUS S. MIDDLETON, Examiner.

B. BELKIN, Assistant Examiner. 

1. AN AIRCRAFT FLIGHT COMPONENT SUCH AS AN AIRCRAFT WING OR BODY HAVING A SURFACE WHICH IS EXPOSED TO AIRFLOW WHEN SAID AIRCRAFT IS FLYING AND IS SUBJECT TO AERODYNAMIC HEATING, SAID COMPONENT INCLUDING AN ASSEMBLY HAVING AN INNER BODY OF MONOCOQUE CONSTRUCTION, A SHEET OF METAL HAVING A FLUID CONDUIT FORMED THEREIN, ONE WALL OF SAID CONDUIT PROJECTING FROM A FIRST SURFACE OF SAID SHEET, THE OTHER SURFACE OF SAID SHEET BEING VOID OF IRREGULARITIES IN THE AREA OF SAID CONDUIT FORMATION, SAID FIRST SURFACE OF SAID SHEET ABUTTING OUTWARDLY FACING SURFACE PORTIONS OF SAID INNER BODY, AND A CHANNEL FORMATION IN THE ABUTTED SURFACE OF SAID INNER BODY SHAPED TO ACCOMMODATE AND SUPPORT SAID BULGING WALLS OF SAID CONDUIT FORMATION IN SAID SHEET OF METAL. 